


Defective

by AquaBlackChan



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: AU, Angst, Anxiety, Cracked Gems, Emotional Abuse, F/F, Fluff, Gonna be adding tags as this story progresses, I’m gonna try and update this, OC Protagonist, PTSD, Romance, Story-Driven, There’s an OC/Canon ship in here; don’t read if you don’t like it, Third Person POV, future smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-03-03 17:55:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21677959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AquaBlackChan/pseuds/AquaBlackChan
Summary: The creation of the Era 2 Peridot’s was considered a success. However, despite being created by the most well-renowned Diamond, there was one flaw in the creation of the Peridot’s. One that came out later, and the only one that's considered ultimately flawed. No matter the decisions, she'll always be seen as having no dignity.'...' = Inner thoughts!"..." = Talking!(Takes place during Season 1 of SU and onward)
Relationships: Amethyst/Pearl (Steven Universe), Lapis Lazuli (Steven Universe)/Original Character(s), Ruby/Sapphire (Steven Universe)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 12





	1. Left Behind, But Not Forgotten

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, Aqua here! Today I present you with an original work of an OC that I've made and worked on for 1-2 months! This will be her entire story, as well as her present-self during the events of normal SU and then forwarded to SU:Future.
> 
> I will also be adding story elements from the SU Prism games as well. Albeit that I have not much knowledge over them, I've done some digging and I pretty much have the plot memorized at this rate. I know about Hessonite and the other Garnets, which they'll be mentioned in this story.
> 
> This story is also told in the POV of the protagonist, which is the OC I've created. It will also be told in the POV of the Diamonds as well. I know that Steven is essential to the entire plot of the show, BUT it's worth noting that everything doesn't need to revolve around Steven.
> 
> I've worked hard on this, and although I may suffer from writer's block from time-to-time, I'll make sure to do my best on updating this work as much as possible!
> 
> If this possibly gets enough kudos and reads, I may make separate fics based on this OC as well.
> 
> I hope you enjoy reading!!

Era 2 is considered a rush-job. A rush-job where gems were made without any abilities whatsoever, and soon would be impacted by gem society. Some rumors that it was to prevent another war outbreak, others say that it was supposed to make more gems to change how society used to run back in Era 1. It doesn't change the fact that these gems were _ ruined,_ ruined in a sense that it's enough to break the mental state. They were considered faulty, useless, and could only be useful by the technology the Diamonds made themselves. Two types of gems fall into this specific category, as one is somewhat valued in gem society while the other is not.

The first one is defective gems. Defective gems, although not useless, are considered the odd bunch of the group within Homeworld. Nicknamed as 'off-colors', defective gems harbor multiple traits. Such as a different personality from what they're supposed to be, or some would stutter, a lot of them would even have delayed reactions, or just plain out faulty. Physical traits, on the other hand, harbored a different appearance. Appearing as the opposite color OR having a similar color palette, or being conjoined twins. These gems are most likely to be shattered due to their differences from other gems, but some are kept primarily due to pity, or by a genuine order.

Another type of gems is Era 2 gems.

They're automatically considered useless, regardless of what they are, unless they have the technology. A Peridot, for instance, is considered useless and harbors no dignity if they don't have their Limb Enhancers. Naturally, they appear as small and don't have anything magic-related like their Era 1 predecessors. These gems were rushed and couldn't sustain the proper magic within their gems. Naturally, they also don't come with their own very weapon. Peridots are like Pearls in a sense, although not looked to stand pretty amongst the higher-ups, they're considered higher than a Quartz soldier. It's primarily due to their status as an analyzer, an investigator, a certified Kindergartner if you will. These gems are intelligent by default and will use technology to get what they want. For instance, a Jasper or an Amethyst can be assigned to a Peridot as an 'escort', meaning that they'll be their bodyguard or guiding them to the right place.

However, as much as Peridots are valued as analyzers, they are nothing more than mere jokes the moment they remove their Limb Enhancers. They're weak, vulnerable, and unable to defend themselves. Era 2 is considered a failure, a failure where the gems are unable to produce their own abilities OR their own weapons. At the very least, defective gems have the opportunity to do all kinds of things! Shapeshifting, making their own weapons, and are magical -- while Peridots are not, including other Era 2 gems.

However... During the creation of the Peridots, one was left behind, forgotten even. The runt of the litter. Although the same height as a standard Peridot, harboring 4'8" in height-wise, they're _ defective. _

* * *

A turquoise eye opened widely, the cold air immediately brushing against turquoise skin. The frail body felt stiff, unable to move its muscles as it remained frozen in a statue-like position. The air felt humid, yet at the same time, easy to feel without any weight. Her eye then scanned the whereabouts of the location, harboring curiosity in the orbs. Air then filled her non-existent lungs, inhaling and exhaling. This place... It was all green, dark even, and harbored strange contraptions that were labeled as 'injectors' by something called 'Homeworld'. She couldn't quite pinpoint why she had the word 'Homeworld' inside of her head, or 'injector' even, but at the very least she had names. On the walls, it harbored cut-outs of figures that were small, much like her. The smell in the air, on the other hand, harbored disgusting odor and enough to make the gem squint her eye in reaction and finally move her muscles, covering her 'sense bunch'. What was this place? Why was she here?

Turning her head slowly as she removed her palm from her 'sense bunch', she began to finally unveil the questions vortexing inside of her head. Everything went black for a few mere seconds, realization kicking in and beginning to question her own existence.

_ '...What is my purpose?' _

Those thoughts rang inside of her head like a non-ending bell, as if letting out an alarm for a fight or flight response. This inner thought of hers made her feel... afraid. What was she here for? As she scanned her whereabouts, she finally took a few steps within the crevice of the planet she resided in. The skies were a gloomy green, a bit of fog covering up the skies to make it seem darker and less visible. By default, this planet harbored no lifeforms from her exploring within the crevice. It was an entire ridge created by intense erosion, and judging from the opened up holes near her own, she then came to the conclusion that she wasn't alone.

Eyeing the other holes near hers, she approached a similar hole much like her own, though it harbored more of a triangular shape than her own, which was an oddly-shaped opening. The mysterious gem then placed her hand on the edges of the entrance, stroking it with her thumb with intense concentration. Upon stroking the edges, some of the color rubbing onto her pale hand. Squinting her eye in reaction, she then turned her head upwards, rubbing it off by rubbing it on her clothes.

"W-Were... Were there others like me?"

A soft nasally voice came from her lips, stuttering the few sentences. Furrowing her eyebrows, she made sure to inspect some of the other holes near her own, doing the exact same thing. All of the other holes harbored different edges upon them, having a tear-drop shaped hole and the other being a diamond-shaped hole. A hypothesis was formed, that there _ were _other beings around here, but they went somewhere else. Despite the hypothesis and the possible analogy of her conclusion, she still felt cautious around her surroundings.

Taking a few steps forward, she had to watch where she stepped, or otherwise she'd hurt her manifested form, which she has done multiple times from her traveling through the dark crevice. Stepping on sharp rocks accidentally, tripping on rocks that she wasn't aware of, and overall being clumsy. There was no fear around her, yet she felt... weary. It was as if someone was watching her from the shadows, but yet every time that she'd try to look, nobody was there. Her entire body would react negatively to the thoughts swirling in her head like a vortex, already making assumptions and theories on what happened to the possible other lifeforms that were created like her despite the hypothesis she formed. Did they shatter? Did they get off this planet? How will she get off this planet? What even is THIS planet? She kept her hands to herself, trying to make herself feel less 'incomplete' and in hopes to make herself feel calm. Her footsteps would echo throughout the crevice, air bristling against her skin with shaky breaths. This planet was unusually cold as well, as her breath could be seen due to the sheer cold. As gems don't feel cold, naturally they wouldn't shiver, but this gem in particular did.

"...N-Nnn..."

Shivering a bit, the mysterious gem then rubbed her hands against her arms, her sharp teeth chittering against one another. The further she went, the colder it's gotten and the more lifeless it became. When was this going to end? When will she be out of here? She never knew.

Finally, after eons of walking in a never-ending crevice, she finally managed to get out of there and see the world for what it truly is! Her turquoise eye scanned the environment, intrigued at the thought of discovering more, but unfortunately faltered at the sight before her. What was this? This was... _ clearly not _the planet she envisioned! The world she inhabited harbored dark green ridges across the plain, the skies harboring the same look back in the crevice, but... There were some ships here! Unfortunately, they were broken down and they had no fuel within their tanks whatsoever as this mysterious gem inspected it. Everything was broken down. As she inspected the machinery a bit more to learn its whereabouts, she then stepped on a glass panel by accident, earning a gasped response and jumping in reaction.

"A-AH! S-Show yourselves!"

The flight-or-fight response kicked in, making her feel jumpy and startled, fear coursing through her very body from the discovered artifact. As much as she was unprepared, she tried her best to grab onto a metal piece, immediately about to hit the thing that was about to try and attack her. Her hunch was _ nearly _correct about someone watching her, but it was only her inner thoughts messing with her. After realizing this, she somewhat became ashamed of herself, earning a bashful expression as her cheeks slightly bloomed.

"..N-Nobody? Oh..."

Lowering the metal piece, she then heavily sighed, feeling a weight on her shoulders. As much as she wanted to slump down, curl up in a ball and hope that someone finds her, she had a gut feeling that she _ shouldn't _ give up. _ It was like it was written in her as if it were code _. However, the moment she calmed down, she looked at the glass she shattered due to a mere accident. Her only eye then widened in reaction, touching the glass in a curious manner and picking it up, bringing it to her face.

She saw... her reflection.

Her hair held ridges, messy hair, especially at the front. It was as if her hair resembled a star of some kind, though mainly incomplete. The hair on the back harbored light tips, meanwhile, the hair on the front harbored light blue tips. Her hair also resembled a darker turquoise in contrast to her pale skin. Her gemstone was located on the left side of her face, completely replacing her left eye. She was in complete awe of the reflection, her eyes harboring a small Diamond pupil in reaction.

"...Whoa..."

This is the _ first time _she saw herself in... how long? Has it been hours? Days? She didn't know, but it felt like a gift to her. A gift for surviving on this wasteland of a planet.

**However.**

Her peace then ended after hearing a loud thump on the land she was on, immediately tumbling down as the glass then cracked. Everything became foggy to her vision as her only eye squinted harshly before opening, a loud indescribable noise was filling her eardrums, causing her entire body to stiffen. This turn of events made her start to panic, what was happening!? Why was this even happening!? From her time on this planet, NOBODY ever bothered to show themselves 'till now! She just wanted to curl up and make the noise _ stop, _but how could she even do that?! As the indescribable noise faded, her entire form was trembling, shaking and heavily panting before flinching as a loud **thump **was heard.

A shuttle was opening.

In fear, the gem then rushed to hide behind a spaceship, eyeing the mysterious shuttle. Her breaths were raggedy, her form was trembling, and she couldn't pinpoint what was happening! All she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry.

_ Three mysterious beings approached off the ship. _ The trio was rather tall, harboring robotic-like limbs, all three of them approaching off the shuttle with loud thumps. One held a star-like hairstyle, similar to the mysterious gem. The other one harbored a teardrop hairstyle of look, and the one in charge held a Diamond-shaped hairstyle. The one in the Diamond-shaped hairstyle looked far more serious than the other two. Albeit that the trio was much taller than the mysterious gem, she was able to conclude that they looked somewhat like _ her._ What type of gem were they? It could possibly try to answer her own question of what gem she is! As the gem tried to peek her head out, the trio then shined their lights across the plain.

"I'd rather stay at Homeworld..." Groaned the one with the teardrop hairstyle, before being shushed by the star-shaped gem.

"Quiet. We just have to get this _ done _and over with. It should approximately take us... 5 minutes, in contrast to our trip her--"

"An order is an _ order _ ." Exclaimed the leader of the group, she was already annoyed at how these two would just blabber the mouths. During their trip to this planet, all that they did was bicker and talk nonstop! While she, the leader, would rather have some time to herself and analyze some contraptions in hopes to make other worlds that produced other Peridots much more viable, they were, unfortunately, sent on this mission by _ Yellow Diamond _herself. Why? As much as they wanted to question it, they couldn't and proceeded to go do what they had to do.

What was it...? Collect some type of specimen? Whatever. This place is a dump anyway.

_ 'How were they projecting lights from their hands!?' _is what the gem wanted to shout out. But she didn't. Rather, she ducked her head but it only merely caused a rock to fall out of position, which then they all turned their attention towards the noise. The one with the Diamond-shaped haircut signified the others to go check it out, circle around it. As the thumping of metallic boots became louder and circled around the smaller gem, she couldn't take it anymore and yelled out, trembling.

"A-Aahhh!" The mysterious gem yelled out, cowering herself away from the trio that was shining lights onto her. If she had a heart, it'd be pounding against her chest harshly from the sheer anxiety that was filling her very being! All of her thoughts were vortexing inside of her mind, in a never-ending circle and forming a hurricane of negative thoughts. Murmuring could be heard between two gems besides the leader, squinting her eyes. Were they... talking bad about her? The sudden thought of that made her feel a sudden sharp pain in her chest but merely remained silent with a few whimpers there and there.

"Is she defective?" Murmured the one with the teardrop haircut, which made the star-haired gem groan in reaction. "Obviously. She looks _ different _from us, reacts differently! Considering that she's been here for Stars how long, it's like she was the runt of the litter--"

"QUIET." Exclaimed the leader of the group, signifying the other two to turn off their lights. This also made the mysterious turquoise gem shiver in fear, earning a small 'eep' in reaction. As the leader sighed heavily, her eyebrows were furrowed. Yellow Diamond exclusively sent these three Peridots to escort this defective gem to Homeworld. But why? What was so important about the runt of the litter? They'd hardly care less about this defective gem, and would rather leave her to rot than just take her to Homeworld. Though, orders are orders... unfortunately.

"You there." The leader said bluntly, earning a small gasp from the smaller gem in comparison. "Y-Yes?--"

"We were sent here to escort you by Homeworld," The leader said with bold confidence, her fingertips being formed in such a way to make a holographic interface. "We're here primarily by orders. We won't harm you whatsoever."

...Homeworld? That was the name she had in her mind! It IS a place after all! Getting up from being tumbled down, she then sat on her knees, harboring a curiosity look into her turquoise eye, which earned a grimace look from the leader. "A-Anyway..." The nasal voice of the leader spoke up once more, helping the smaller gem upward. "We're your allies."

"...I-I..." Spoke the defective gem, earning a bashful look on her face. This was such an embarrassing question to ask the higher-ups, especially since she JUST got rescued. Averting her only eye as her hair kept getting in the way of her face, she merely kept her gaze away from the leader, unable to look at them in the eye. From this action alone, the leader merely raised her eyebrows in confusion, while the other two gems were being the usual -- which is snickering behind the leaders' back. "I-I know this is a dumb question to ask and all, but... What's my name?"

A blank expression then went onto the leader's face, which earned a few snickers from the two other gems. This broke the poor gem's mentality slightly, was it funny to ask a question? Honestly, it just made her regret even asking them. As much as the leader _ also _ wanted to laugh, she merely cleared out her throat, trying to remain professional and _ remind _the two other gems that this is a serious job. After analyzing the mysterious gem's cut after a few seconds, the leader then spoke again in seriousness in her voice.

"You are Facet-2A7L Cut 4XG. You are a _ Peridot, _much like us."

_ '...Peridot? That's my name?' _

The leader then continued. "I'm assuming that the isolation from other lifeforms made you question your existence, correct?"

_ 'How was she spot on?!' _

"...Judging from your initial reaction, I am correct." This acknowledgment only made the bossy Peridot look somewhat disgusted at the defective being, rolling her eyes as the holographic interface faded away. It seemed that she was recording the encounter, which only made the defective gem become nervous, trying to look and see if she could change the awkward tension within the air. As the leader acknowledged her uncomfortable presence, she merely looked behind her, eyes narrowing at the other two Peridots.

"W-We're truthfully sorry!!!" The two Peridots spoke in unison, fear within their voices as well as their own bodies trembling. The sharp look of their leader that held daggers within them made them stiffen, unable to properly handle a sentence as they both immediately shot back up towards the entrance of their ship. Definitely shut up the two Peridots as she then turned her gaze back towards the defective one. Surely the duo will get a scolding the moment they're done with this forsaken mission. "My sincerest apologies for these two; they just _ blabber _nonstop, which is quite irritating..."

...Irritating? Interestingly, the defective Peridot was learning more and more each and every day. This was definitely a new experience...

As the leader of the trio pulled out the holographic interface again, she began dragging icons to a specific box, which the defective gem raised her eyebrows in reaction. "What are you doing?" Being asked this question, the leader continued 'till she swished it away, retracting her fingers before looking at the gem and turning back at the ship. "I was primarily making my -- _ our _mission complete of extracting you from this planet. We have to go back to Homeworld and make you accustomed to the standards of society."

Blinking, the turquoise gem held worry in her voice, trying her hardest to not stutter. Her body immediately tensed up upon thinking about the possible outcomes of what'll happen when she arrives on Homeworld. As much as she desperatelywanted contact from other lifeforms, which she KNEW was out there, she could only let negative thoughts vortex within hr mind. "...Uhh... And by that, what do you mean exactly?"

Upon being asked this, the leader merely blinked once more before sighing heavily. "Since you have been accustomed to this planet for so long, and the fact that you had no contact with lifeforms, you'll have to get accustomed to Homeworld standards. Especially getting rid of that **hideous** attire on your body; it's all shredded." The Diamond-shaped haircut made sure to emphasize her standpoint on Peridots outfit, which would only make her feel bashful, lowering her gaze as she gripped onto her own arm. Was this how Homeworld was? Harsh? Unforgiving? The leader then continued, her gaze narrowed at the defective gem. "Once you get accustomed to Homeworld standards, you'll then have a position to be chosen by a higher-up -- or rather, your own manager."

Her own manager?

That's... something... From hearing what she said, the defective gem came to the conclusion that a 'manager' meant that she'd have someone bossing her around, right? As much as she wanted to be in contact with lifeforms... This is NOT what she expected --

"Anyways..." The leader then sighed heavily, walking towards the shuttle, which made the defective gem widen her eye in reaction. Oh yeah, they were supposed to go into there! "We have to get to the shuttle. The other two are waiting and we're stalling our time." Ushering the defective gem to follow her, she then guided her into the shuttle. Inside of the shuttle harbored yellow strips of lines, as well as a light green interior design in contrast to the ship outside. Everything looked way bigger than it initially did outside as well, but Peridots negative thinking got to her. As much as she wanted to gaze at the beautiful design within the ship and learn its components, she couldn't concentrate whatsoever.

The two Peridots within the trio were at the pilot section, the star-shaped haircut to greet them. "About time you two got in here. I was starting to get impatient!" Growled the starry one, which only made the leader growl in response. "Guide her to the cell she'll be residing in until we arrive at Homeworld." The starry Peridot merely nodded, which made the defective gem confused in reaction. "W-Wait... a cell? Why?--"

"Oh." The leader spoke, turning her head towards the turquoise gem. "Although you are the _ same _ gem and cut as us, you're defective. We're unsure of what you're capable of, so for the time being, you'll be put in a cell for many classified reasons. I hope that you understand." Classified information? Even then, Peridot _ knew _that was complete utter lies. Just because she's what, defective, doesn't mean she can't read in-between the lines!

As the leader continued speaking, "Now then, can you _ please _guide her to the cell? You can come back the moment you put her in there." Speaking with a monotonous voice, the defective gem could only stand there, baffled at the thought of being put in a cell for merely being defective. As the thoughts came in like a whirling whirlpool, was being defective bad? So many worries were piling up on her shoulders, her eyelid lowering as her lips formed a small frown. The turquoise gem couldn't even begin to speak her mind, as she was practically speechless.

"Come with me." The starry Peridot said, guiding the smaller one to the end of the ship, unfortunately to dismay towards Peridot. Uneasiness began to fill the defective gem's being, tensing up more each second as they were arriving at the end of the destination. The more they reached the end of the hall, the more scared she felt, worrying as if being caught was a horrible decision to partake in. Metallic footsteps echoed throughout the room, and as she put in a code for the cell she was designated for, she then put the defective gem inside. The moment she did, a yellow barrier came out. "For safety precautions, do _ not _touch this. It will harm your manifestation and you'll be hurt from the aftermath." Much like the leader, the starry Peridot held a monotonous tone with an unfaltering gaze, intimidated almost instantly by her own look.

As she turned around to go back towards the pilot room, she merely looked back at the turquoise gem. "We will come back to you when we've arrived at the landing site." With that, she then walked away, leaving the turquoise gem all by her lonesome... _ again_. All of this happened so fast, way too fast for her own liking. Standing there like an idiot, the gem could only slump down against the wall, curling up and hugging her legs, letting the foreseeable numbness take over her body. Was she made _ wrong? _ Why were they always so harsh towards her? Is being defective _ bad? _She couldn't quite pinpoint it, but the more she thought about it, the more she felt miserable inside, and the more she felt miserable, the more numbness she felt.

The insides of the cell made her feel more isolated than ever than being on _ that _planet. It was like everything was closed off, away from reality, and was only left with her negative thinking and thoughts. It was a never-ending cyclone of sadness, her body tense and unable to communicate properly like a real gem. What's going to happen at Homeworld? Will people treat her like a bad person still? Everything was just too much to handle, stressing out her very being, and before she knew it...

_ Tears were going down her only eye socket. _

Soft muffled cries came out as hoarse, her entire body trembling until the defective gem pulled her head back, gently stroking the wetness on her face with her thumb, her eye widening. "..What... is this...?" Sniffling in-between her sentences as the tears kept piling up and overflooding the floodgates, she couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was, but... It felt horrible. It felt like the entire solar system collapsed onto her. It felt like the entire world was out to get her. But she couldn't answer her own questions at the current moment, as the crying merely made her feel... exhausted, something that she never felt before.

As the softest sobs continued throughout the trip to Homeworld, she then slowly drifted off into a blackened state known as 'sleep', unaware of what it is. Before she knew it, however, she'd be at Homeworld awaiting a new future that she never saw coming.


	2. Disappointment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A defective Peridot meets Yellow Diamond for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO, THAT SU:FU FINALE... IT HURT ME.  
I'M NOT GONNA TRY AND SPOIL ANYTHING, but hey! Aqua here! I hope that you've been enjoying this fic as much as I've been writing this! I've been wanting to write out my girl's biography in full detail, but never really got the motivation 'till recently.
> 
> My bad for taking awhile on trying to make this! You know, writers block and all. However, seeing such positive feedback on the first chapter really motivated me, so here you guys go!!!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Adds a lot more development and things are gonna get really wild from here on out.

_ Click. Click. Click. _

The sounds of a holographic interface, dragging icons left to right with the swish of a finger. The leader of the Peridot trio was the one responsible for making such a noise, which she sat down in the main pilot room, halfway to their destination point towards Homeworld. This trio is simply known as the _ ' Intergalactic Extraction Team ' _ , or _ I.E.T _for short. These Peridots were assigned by a Garnet gemstone, which are considered as higher-ups within Homeworld society. As a trio, these Peridots are known to go onto missions, such as extracting dangerous liquid or to extract a relic that could be deemed as worthy to advance gem technology. Although a Peridot, these three were considered much higher than your normal standard Peridot.

So, why were they assigned on an _ outrageous _mission such as extracting a defective gem!?

It didn't make any sense. The leader was confused, outraged even, but at the same time... It was Yellow Diamond that gave them the request. Which made it even more confusing! Didn't Yellow Diamond value less defectiveness and valued greatness? Although as much as the trio didn't question her motives, it still boggled them to the core, so can you really blame them for thinking like this? Their thoughts were in a whirlpool, a never-ending cycle of questions, yet none of them had the courage to tell how they truly felt towards Yellow Diamond. They'd be labeled as defective! They'd even get **shattered!**

This trio also went through a lot together. Nearly shattered before as well. Despite Peridots being super durable against anything, they were _ nearly _shattered due to something that happened within their ship. It was a day that they would never forget, and if it weren't for their manager being there at that moment, they'd be long gone by now, forever known as mere gem dust. Thank the Diamonds that never happened.

For the sake of no confusion, the trio will be listed as names, which the aloof goes first and the leader is last. **Starry, Teary, ** and **Dot ** will be their names. Starry was known as aloof quite often, though she's quite considerate but oblivious to certain social cues. Influenced easily by Teary, this Peridot, in particular, is known to be quite harsh and is straight to the point. Though she prefers to gossip quite often and would rather talk behind someone's back than talk to them straight-up. Dot, however, is the leader of the trio. She's courageous and is known to take a stand on multiple things, as well as putting the other two back in their place whenever they misbehave. The leader is also known to be somewhat racist towards defective gems, which is why she showed some consideration towards our protagonist but _ also _shows that she's disgusted at her.

Starry harbored a gemstone on her chest; primarily covered up by her uniform, which is excellent due to her being known to extract things off of foreign planets. Teary, on the other hand, harbored her gemstone on her left shoulder. It's primarily covered up by armor, so this was also quite excellent for her to have. As for the leader, Dot, Dot harbored her gemstone on her naval, which is shown visible but covered with a transparent yet durable glass surrounding her gemstone.

"..." The trio remained silent, working on their destination to Homeworld. The entire atmosphere was tense, and nothing seemed to help out the atmosphere either.

It was a quiet ride. They all had their inner demons to face, most likely due to their negative thinking based on how they view their Diamond. Starry was tense, uncomfortable even, as she kept on shifting in her position and couldn't find a comfortable spot. Teary kept on tapping her digits against the counter, arched against the chair. Dot, on the other hand, tried to concentrate on her work as much as possible to avoid thinking negatively. The atmosphere was tense and it felt like everything was fading to black in a short amount of time.

...Until they all heard a call in their intercom.

"AH!" Dot yelled out, flinching in her seat as her translucent visors nearly fell off her face. This also made the other two flinch, Starry being the one to fall out of her chair and grumble from the fall. While Teary nearly fell, she was glaring daggers at Dot due to the sudden loud noise while growling. Clutching her fists tightly against one another, Teary raised her voice, enough to make Starry flinch.

"Hey! What the _ hell _ is your damn problem?!--" The moment they all were about to argue, they saw the incoming transmission, which they all froze in place, eyes widened and Starry's mouth was slightly agape. Teary's mouth definitely shut up immediately the moment she saw who it was coming from, earning shushes from Dot. It was a transmission from **Yellow Diamond! **Thank the Stars that they were nearly in range towards Homeworld! They were about to finally put this meaningless trip to an end and to finally get rid of that defective Peridot in the back.

After gaining her composure and the other two getting back in position, Dot accepted the call, Teary and Starry murmuring towards one another 'till the screen was almost turning on. On the screen, it then appeared Yellow Diamond, inputting some sort of code for another world that she was about to colonize. Her face looked stern, impatient even. A simple look would be asking to be shattered right then and there, or be poofed even! Man, their Diamond was really busy daily, huh? Starry and Teary readied themselves to look professional, contrary to what they’re usually are, as to where Dot quickly rolled her eyes.

A stern voice went through the intercom, yellow eyes glaring at the crew within the pilot room. "You’re late."

Teary and Starry practically paled at the sight of their leader. However, they did worship her as a goddess, yet they knew what she'd do if they saw them during their expeditions across the galaxy. They then kept their mouths shut, letting Dot do the talking.

"My Diamond," Dot spoke with confidence in her voice, unwavering at the sight of her Diamond before her. "My sincerest apologies of being late and being out of range, it was that our communicator was jammed due to the harsh debris on _ that _planet." It’s true! The planet was destroyed till the point where the moment they landed, their communicator became damaged and jammed. If it weren’t for Starry repairing it, it would’ve been devastating to go back to Homeworld.

"Oh." A sigh then came out of Yellow Diamond, looking at another panel as she pulled up a log about the gem they just extracted. They’ve sent some of their droids down there to investigate, so perhaps that the lurking shadow was the defective Peridot! It's possible. As Yellow Diamond looked back to a panel, she then dismissed it, turning her full attention towards the Peridot crew. "I will have to inform your manager about trying to improve the conditions of your ship. We don't need that getting in the way of our empire."

Although they are the I.E.T, their manager... Yes, she's kind and all, but they didn't want to disturb her! She is an Era 1 veteran of the war back on that world called Earth, and lost all of her fleets! She had to resort to getting these three Peridots in exchange for losing her entire crew... As kind as their manager was, those three felt incredibly bad for being a last resort.

"...How is the defective one?"

Oh. That defective gem. A sigh came out of Dot, pulling up a panel as it appeared to be a camera within the cell. As the panel was pulled up, Yellow Diamond leaned in to see the panel more vividly, eyes squinting to see a better picture of the panel. Then she was seen, a Peridot with messy turquoise hair, not resembling her own kin. Her skin is a pale turquoise, and her gem is located on her left eye. She's not like the others -- she's _ defective. _The defective gem had her legs curled up, her face hidden but it was definitely a match towards the pictures that the droids have taken when they were on that planet. Her eyes then closed in approval, pulling herself back and swished her hand towards Dot's face.

"Alright. I've seen enough. Thank you for extracting her, Peridot. I'll be sure to inform your manager about your ship's condition. I will send you instructions on what to do with the defective gem."

With that, the click of the intercom has gone away, leaving Starry and Teary to sigh in relief as they immediately slouched down onto their seats. Dot's fists then began to curl up as if she were in a fighting position, shaking in anger. Seriously, what did they want with the defective one in the back anyways? All she could do was just cower away, stutter even! What was it that Peridot had that Dot didn't have? Why did she get the acknowledgement of her superior, _ her _ Yellow Diamond!? It just wasn't **fair. **It wasn't fair at all. A negative whirlpool began to circulate in her inner thoughts, sharp teeth grinding against each other as small veins began to pop-out of her forehead. It looked as if she was going feral based on how she was being!

"...Boss? Are you alright?"

Dot immediately flinched, seeing the look of Starry's worried and concerned expression. In Starry's eyes, Dot's eyes were widened and full of rage, sweating as cold shivers began to go down her spine. To her surprise, Dot shook her head and slapped her face to get herself back to normal. '_ Focus, Peridot! FOCUS.' _is what would echo throughout her thought process, but all she could do was think of how special that Peridot was. Why was she so special? What was so important about her? What did she even do to get Yellow Diamond to see her worth?

All she is, is defective.

Defective. _ Defective. _ ** _Defective!_ **

"...Yes, I am fine. Let's continue to the landing point on Homeworld."

"But--"

"THAT'S AN ORDER!"

From the sudden yell, Starry just slowly backed up, eyes tear-filled. The hand that was reaching out to Dot suddenly retracted itself, Starry's petite frame shaking slightly in reaction to the sudden yell. Oh no. As Starry is the sensitive one in the group, she _ can _cry easily, no matter what happens. The angered expression from Dot's facial features faltered, becoming worry and tense. "S-Starry, wait, I didn't mean --"

Dot tried to call-out to her, but pulled her hand back as she saw Starry walking away without a word. No time to fall into emotions, as it's quite unnecessary. It's a waste of time. Dot then sighed heavily, turning her frame back to the controls to the ship. They were at least 1.5 light-years away from Homeworld, it won't take long. Inputting in the code to activate the hyper thrusters, she then pressed on a green button, as to where it flashed red.

_ "Commencing hyper thruster mode." _

...

"Move it, prisoner."

"...N-Nnn..."

"I said... MOVE IT!"

"O-OW!!--"

The defective Peridot woke up alarmed, having an object hit her head and nearly hitting her gem, as to where her only eye was squinted tightly. After opening up her only eye to look up at the alarmingly tall green Peridot, she held some type of device that had a yellow-aura surrounding it. It looked like the same Peridot that had a teardrop hairstyle, and she was intimidated by her the most. It seemed to be that she hit the poor gem with it, but not touching her directly with the yellow bolts of electricity. Panicking slightly, she got up, shaking. Her hands were handcuffed, so she had no choice but to obey her superior.

Having to be handcuffed, she was then led off the ship, seeing a whole new area. The sky was a light magenta color, and there she could see three sculptures. A white looking head and torso, with multi-colored arms that harbored yellow and blue. There were other gems surrounding the area, but... None of them even seemed to look in her direction. Even if they did, they held a disgusted expression, as to where it only increased her anxiety. As her movement began to slow down, she was then nudged by the superior teardrop-haired Peridot, making her snap back into reality.

Seeing all these types of different gems made her feel... unsafe. It made her feel vulnerable, and she _ hated _ this feeling. All she could do was quiver in fear, fearing that something _ will _happen out of her control. It felt like a vomit inducing feeling in her own form, everything within her surroundings started to fade out. Only following orders by her own kin to go into a certain place, she didn't realize that she was nearly at her own destination. Her face was pale, harboring a blank stare in her only eye socket, her body tense.

Though, that dazed state of hers finally faded away, earning another hit on the head, coming back into reality. As her vision started to come back, she was in a room of some kind, as gems that had dressed were in the room. All of them look unfazed, but _ she knew _that they harbored disgust towards her. After all, seeing that type of reaction from the outside area made her feel unwelcome, so obviously she'd feel like that! As she looked right in front of her, fear hit her in the very core. A tall being with yellow skin, hair pointy as a shard, and that she had an intimidating glare on her face.

"My Diamond," The teardrop-shaped Peridot spoke, nudging the defective Peridot towards the taller being. "Here is the Peridot you asked for."

Her petite frame began to shake, her face pale and her pupils even shrunk. Who was this? Why did it feel so... off? The atmosphere felt like it was going to eat her alive, unable to get out of it. It felt like she was about to cry, and that she couldn't even muster up enough courage to even bring forth a proper sentence. Time felt like it stood still, and even it was, it'd be moving at a snail's pace. This agonizing moment is making the poor defective gem tremble in fear, non-existent sweat forming on her body.

"Thank you, Peridot. You will remain outside."

Is... Is the yellow lady her superior? As she felt and heard the footsteps echo throughout the room, it was then closed with a bang, making the gem flinch. As soon as she left, Yellow Diamond then looked down onto the defect, her eyes harboring disappointment within them. Folding her arms as her legs remained crossed, the gem continued to tremble, afraid to even speak her own thoughts.

"Speak." The woman said coldly, making the gem flinch and accidentally causing tears to roll down her one eye.

"I-I, uh... H-Hello --" is all she could muster up. This earned a disappointed sigh until she waved her hand, asking the gems to remove the handcuffs. The moment they did, she then gripped her own wrists, shaking in fear.

"..U-Uh, w-why... am I here?"

"..." Yellow Diamond could merely sigh until taking a deep breath, pulling up an intercom near her own seat. She was filling out paperwork while talking to her? Just... Who was she?

"You are here for _ many _ reasons. One, you are _ defective. _ I _ NEVER _ had a defective Peridot until now. You are a _ disappointment." _

Her only pupil widened in reaction, her mouth slightly agape as she was still struck in fear. At the same time though, she's... a disappointment? Why would they get her from that planet to ALL THE WAY over here?

"Secondly, although you are defective and a big disappointment to my empire, you have quality. Quality that I cannot describe. More-so, unlike any other Peridot, you have abilities that exceed the other Peridots."

...What?

"You have potential, despite being a total wreckage to my empire. From the readings I have received, you radiate a similar energy to those gems that were made back in Era 1."

Era 1? Is that the era where a war came into place? She doesn't quite remember it, but from how she was made, she remembers it faintly as the gem war. Did these gems have abilities?

"Although yes, you're defective, you spent much longer time in the ground, able to develop such energies, primarily due to _ me _ being the one to create you. You have potential, Peridot. If you fail to meet my expectations, you will _ not _like what happens."

As the last sentence came into play, Yellow Diamond's glare darkened and made the poor gem tremble more than before. This atmosphere, this tension... All of these gems surrounding them, it felt like a personal hell. She wanted to cry. She wanted to curl up in a ball and never get out of it. So many things are happening at once, and she can't take it anymore.

"I-I--"

"Now, I assign you with my first order. This one is simple enough."

Being cut off as she kept her mouth shut, the taller figure brought a panel and minimized it as so that way she could see it better. There's a person in the panel... They have dark skin with green markings all over their body, and including spiky but yet messy hair. Her form looks buff, kind of like the Garnet gems that she's seen outside...

"This is Uvarovite. She is lacking in her fleet, and she needs one more member into her fleet to be complete. She will train you, and hone you to your possible abilities. No matter what, she _ has _to accept you."

Pulling back the panel as the defective gem blinked in reaction, she then swished her hand forward, signaling her to leave. "Your time is up. Now go."

Shaking her head quickly, she slowly got up, being wobbly. From her anxiety and the urge to cry, she felt a massive migraine navigating itself to her head, as to where she started to hold her head in pain. Soft grunts could be heard from her, and the moment she went outside, she saw the same intimidating Peridot from the same shuttle.

"You were assigned to meet up with Uvarovite, correc--"

Ultimately being cut off, the gem collapsed on her knees, panting rather heavily. Her entire form was trembling, and not only that, her skin was incredibly pale compared to her natural light turquoise skin. Teary then bit her bottom lip before sighing, kneeling down a bit to pick up the smaller form in a bridal type of carry. She's in a bad condition, and although not physically, mentally is where she's hurting. Teary _ knew _what the mission was, and was supposed to be her escort, but... Things have turned out to be the worst case scenario.

Ignoring the stares from the other gems in Homeworld, she kept her goal in mind. Her goal was to bring this gem to Uvarovite to hone her abilities. That's it. Nothing more.

"You clod... This will be the only time I'll help you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you I'd be making this story more driven! From here on out, things will be serious.
> 
> Don't worry, our lovely Peridot protagonist will get a nickname like Squaridot! She just won't get it right now.

**Author's Note:**

> What did you think? Do you have any questions about the protagonist? If you do, please ask so that way I can help elaborate on certain things!
> 
> I wish I could cram a lot of information into this, but unfortunately, I cannot. So if you have any questions, criticism, or anything I can work on -- please do tell me in the comments. I'd appreciate it!


End file.
